SONOMA, Calif. — Karsyn Elledge already is carrying on the Earnhardt legacy and making a name for herself in racing circles around North Carolina.

Now the 12-year-old racing prodigy will take her considerable talent to the West Coast, where she will compete with a colorful car and the famous Earnhardt-style No. 3.

Elledge, the daughter of Kelley Earnhardt-Miller and former Sprint Cup crew chief Jimmy Elledge, will race a 250 mini Outlaw sprint car in California, Montana and throughout the west this summer. She will be sponsored by Nickelodeon and her SpongeBob car will carry the No. 3 that NASCAR legend Dale Earnhardt made famous.

Earnhardt Elledge and her father made the announcement Saturday in victory lane at Sonoma Raceway.

“It’s kinda of a weird moment,” an emotional Jimmy Elledge said. “She’s growing up. This is usually easy for me but this one ain’t really easy.

“This is huge. It is a really neat deal and it’s a neat day. I’m proud that Nickelodeon is wanting to be a part of this and a part of our racing family. None of this was planned, none of this was scripted but here we are today with her standing in victory lane by something that is 50 horsepower.”

Earnhardt Elledge has won most of her races in mini sprint cars at Millbridge Speedway in North Carolina, where she leads the points standings in her division. She will compete in more powerful cars and against better competition this summer at short tracks throughout the west.

And the niece of Dale Earnhardt Jr. will continue to carry on the legacy of her famous grandfather.

“I didn’t get to meet him, but I know that it makes my mom and my dad proud that I run this number,” Earnhardt Elledge said. “I’ve only heard how great it was with this number and this legacy and I am excited to carry it on.”

Earnhardt Elledge also is hoping to follow in the footsteps of another famous driver. She is a huge Danica Patrick fan.

“I am a very big Danica Patrick fan,” she said. “She’s like my idol, because she’s a girl and she races and she shows that girls can do it, too.”

Earnhardt Elledge has met Patrick a few times and interviewed her for videos.

“She always asks me how my racing is going and wishes me luck and it’s different every time we talk,” she said. “It’s just always fun when I talk to her, because I’m talking to Danica Patrick. What’s better?”